Top 5 dangers Associated with Smartphone Addiction among Kids

Addiction and obsession of anything is never a good sign. In fact addiction only leads to a bunch of hefty side effects that can have serious repercussions on your physical as well as mental health. The most common addiction and obsession today is of the smart phone. One in every 5 people owns it, and 1 in every 15 people is prone to any of the most common syndromes associated with it. Here is a list of the most common dangers associated with Smart Phone addiction especially among kids.

Fingers and muscles cramping

Constant texting, gaming and scrolling over a small smart phone screen can lead to serious inflammation in your tendons and muscles hence making your fingers cramp and sore. Doctors and other medical practitioners call this state “Text Claw” and it with the advent of smart phones, this state has phenomenally increased especially in teenagers.

Another common terminology, “Cell Phone Elbow” is used to describe a weird tingling in your fingers and soreness in your elbow and arm. This usually happens when you have bent your elbow in a specific position for far too long. And with excessive smart phone usage, it is usually a common issue which further leads to lethargy, soreness in the shoulders and neck strain as well.

Misaligned posture and neck pain

Ever noticed how misaligned our necks and overall postures are when we are using our smart phones? Such a crooked posture often leads to strain on your back and neck muscles which then results in pain soreness. Hanging your neck low in your lap is one of the most common symptom of the “text Neck” issue found in people who use their smart phones excessively. The best way to relieve the pent up strain in your neck is by fixing your posture by using less of your smart phone or holding it stretched out, perpendicular to your torso.

Blurry vision

Your smart phone comes with a small screen and even smaller font which can add strain on your eyes and lead to blurry vision along with dizziness and in some cases headaches also which are usually a result of the excessive strain on your neck. Sometimes the damage is also permanent however if you feel any of the mentioned symptoms, it is always wise to first increase the font size of your phone and next make an appointment with your eye specialist.

Researchers and specialists also advise not to use your smart phones in dim light and hold it at least 16 to 18 inches away from your face when you are using it. Moreover, using your smart phone before bedtime is also a bad idea as the blue light emitting from it will lead to sleeplessness.

Phobias and tactile hallucinations

Believe it or not, there is a proper phobia associated with losing your smart phone called “nomophobia”. It also accounts for the anxiety and fear associated with the state of being without a phone. Similarly, people may also experience tactile hallucinations in the form of false vibrations.

Research shows that this is most commonly found in students who are strongly dependent on their phones for most part of their day. Feeling a false vibration through your shirt can lead to paranoia based on the addiction and obsession with your smart phone.

Social Seclusion

If you feel your kid is always using their smart phone then you need to start placing some time restraints. This is especially because being stuck with your smart phone leads to many social problems as well. One of the most common problem is social seclusion where the kid is unable to make friends and then later in life unable to retain adult interpersonal relationships as well.

Conclusion

Getting rid of the obsession and addiction your kid has with their smart phone can be a tough job especially since you can’t forcefully just altogether remove the smart phone from their lives. Therefore, one way of reducing their phone usage and dependence on their phone is via monitoring applications that can be used for a variety of functions like placing internet timely restrictions or application timely restrictions which lock down the application and internet as the timer goes off. Similarly, you can also use filters to block adult content that may pop up on your kid’s browsers.

Author Bio:

Angelica is tech geek as well as a Content manager and Social Media enthusiastic. She is extremely passionate and result driven professional. She writes for TheOneSpy blog – a best phone spy app for kids and employees. Follow her on twitter @angelicadowson2

About The Author

TKA is owner and passionate blogger of Technokarak from Delhi, INDIA. He is an Engineer and loves to discover and learn new things on Internet. At Technokarak, he writes articles on Wordpress, SEO, Mobiles, Tablets and other technical stuff.